Understanding Shipment Payment Terms

Maybe you’ve been shiping for years or maybe you’re brand new to the industry. Either way we get so wrapped up in the day-to-day that sometimes we forget the basics of the industry. It’s never a bad idea to take a refresher on some of the more fundamental aspects of your relationship with shipping. We’re going to focus on understanding shipment payment terms.

The payment information is listed pretty clearly on every Freightview BOL. You’ll find it directly under your shipper and consignee information:

Prepaid - this means the shipment is billed to the shipper. If you have prepaid rates in place with a carrier that means you have location specific pricing.

Collect - this means that shipment is billed to the consignee (the person who received the freight.) It’s important to note that collect is not the same as collect-on-delivery (COD). COD means payment is to be collected at the time of delivery.

Third Party - This one is easy-- it’s when the shipment is billed to a third party AKA neither the shipper or the consignee.

Understanding these terms are important when booking your freight. You want to ensure you have the correct information on your BOL to avoid those pesky CBOL (corrected bill of lading) fee’s later down the road.